Advice Please?

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April 4, 2007 at 1:38 pm

#692018
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Kensaken

@kensaken

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I am goin to uni in september and need a laptop for when i go, but i will also need it to make music with it.

Does anyone have any recommendations of any good laptops that could be used for making music as well as just general computer stuff?

Would it be easier to just get a laptop and whack a good soundcard in there, or to buy a package from somewhere where its all already made for music (all the software and soundcard all setup already).

I’ll want to run stuff like cubase, reason and perhaps ableton (when i get it) on there as well as recording from some hardware onto it, so i’d want as good sound quality as i can get.

Im on a pretty tight budget of about £1000 (£1500 if i really push it).
I dont know shit about computers so i dont know really whats good or not.

Anyone have any recommendations, or links to sites where i can buy good (preferably cheap) laptops?

Nice one
April 4, 2007 at 1:49 pm

#882987
1

So not a good look

@so-not-a-good-look

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Personally i would go for the high end external soundcard option most laptop sound cards not that good unless you got a couple grand to spend!

And to be honest a grand will get you a tower that will be way way more powerfull than any laptop with way more storage and the ability to change or upgrade things in the future.I appreciate you cant go lugging a tower about so easy but why not have the tower for your music and a midrange lappy for carting about.Out of £1500 you should still wind up with a couple hundred quid spare after youve bought both.
April 4, 2007 at 6:40 pm

#882994
1

priv8green

@priv8green

Member
Kensaken wrote:

Does anyone have any recommendations of any good laptops that could be used for making music as well as just general computer stuff?

any laptop used for making music is good for general computer stuff

just buy one good for making music
April 4, 2007 at 8:02 pm

#882989
1

MisterDuck

@misterduck

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Does it have to be a PC? Because Macs are very good for anything creative, are easy to use and a lot more stable.

They are expensive, but they can be picked up quite cheap – see display models on Apple’s site. Fully functioning machines, but cannot legally be sold for full price simply ‘cos they appeared on show at a computer show-off thing or whatever.
April 4, 2007 at 11:47 pm

#882991
1

cheeseweasel

@cheeseweasel

Participant
boothy wrote:

Does it have to be a PC? Because Macs are very good for anything creative, are easy to use and a lot more stable.

I’d recommend a mac, if you’re a student everything on the apple websites vat free (theres a link on the site to the education store). The cheapest macbook is 630 quid which is well worth it, but if you have 1000-1500 quid (macs dont have a “pound” sign on the keyboard so i have to keep writin quid which is annoying), u can get a fuckin good laptop, theres a whole range to choose from. Like boothy says, theyr stable, u dont get a lot of the annoying glitches n rubbish u get with windows, and the keyboard lights up and loads of other cool stuff.

If you want a system for recording, an MBox 2 would be a gd start, its an audio/midi interface – 2 inputs, 2 outputs, spdif, midi in, connects via usb. MBoxes range from about 200 quid and come with pro tools LE, reason adapted, ableton lite and loads of other software which is worth the money by itself.

Certainly for 1000 pounds u can buy a macbook, an audio interface and a big external hard drive, which is all u really need for a basic recording system.

http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObjects/ukstore

http://www.dv247.com/invt/29653/
April 5, 2007 at 9:17 am

#882995
1

SNIPERWOLF

@sniperwolf

Member
hi
http://www.sub.co.uk/ make some excellent audio/video editing computers and laptops, check it out.

jake
April 7, 2007 at 6:02 pm

#882993
1

Kensaken

@kensaken

Member
Cheers for the advice guys, still haven’t decided on anything though.

The only thing is, i’ve taken a bit of a stand against macs, since seeing those fucking adverts on myspace. I liked peep show, and mitchell and webb are funny, but i cant stand the way mac have marketed the mac as a “fun” computer. I know microsoft is quite buggy and shit, but how is a mac more fun? just because you can do your work as well as other stuff on a pc doesnt make it boring.
Oh and apple make ipods too, which i despise also (just stick to sony), so i refuse to buy apple products im afraid.
April 7, 2007 at 6:56 pm

#882990
1

MisterDuck

@misterduck

Member
Well it’s more that Macs will make creative tasks 10-times easier. It’s probably more “fun” in that it enables you to create better things… fuck I sound like an advert myself!

If you are definitely going for a PC, a large RAM would probably help particularly for sound engineering or rendering visuals.
April 7, 2007 at 7:12 pm

#882992
1

cheeseweasel

@cheeseweasel

Participant
Oh macs are definitely more fun – the power cords on a magnet so u cant trip over it, theres a glowing apple on the back of the lid, the keyboard lights up, its got an inbuilt vibration sensor so u can turn the laptop into a car alarm tht goes off when someone moves it, thers a camera in the top, its got a remote control so u can use the thing as one huge ipod, the catch on the lid is on a magnet and flips out when u close it, theres endless fun to be had with a mac. TBH I don’t think macs are much better for audio applications than PCs, I’ve had a fair bit of experience with both, I think its more that macs are kinda fashionable amongst creative types. They are more stable tho, and theyr designed to work as one unit, so u dont get lots of device conflicts and random shit going wrong as I find with PCs. Its true tht some audio/video programs will only run on macs tho, e.g. Logic.

Yeh Apple is a shitty company (try ringing them up), theyr one of these “new age, hippy businesses” like starbucks, but then the alternative is lining bill gates’ pocket which isnt much better.
April 9, 2007 at 4:20 pm

#882988
1

Jahoel

@jahoel

Member
“the power cords on a magnet so u cant trip over it”

I managed to do this at a gig. The connector stayed in but the wire ripped out of it. Luckily the battery was fully charged though:bounce_fl
April 9, 2007 at 4:35 pm

#882986
1

Acidfairy

@acidfairy

Member
Try this lot http://www.gear4music.com found it in my future music mag, they do custom build jobs and hi spec laptops for music purposes..
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